Conservation Notes

The medium-weight, plain-weave
fabric support was lined in 1967. It is primed with a very
thin, fluid white ground that appears to have been commercially
applied. Paint of rich consistency was applied
in a variety of thicknesses and textures. The buildings
were roughly delineated using hatches of blue gray, with
spaces, such as the lower left corner, left in reserve to allow
the brightly colored flags to be painted directly on the
imprimatura. The flags were fairly complete before the
details of the street and buildings or the sky were painted,
as is evident from the continuous, zig-zagging brushstroke
that spread the cerulean-hued paint in the region
between the fabric and the pole of the large American
flag. That there are several areas where the paint from
different elements is blended wet-into-wet indicates the
work was created over a fairly short period. And it was
decisively executed; x-radiography reveals very few areas
of overlap or change in the composition. There are minor
nicks and abrasion along the top edge. In 1993, discolored
varnish was removed and the painting was restored.